Obamacare: Scrap this flawed mess for real health fixes

During the recent election, the American people spoke clearly, saying that their elected representatives had failed to focus on the most important issue facing them and their families: jobs. Instead of focusing on job creation to put back to the work the 14.8 million unemployed Americans, 167,000 of them here in San Diego – which means that one out of every 10 employable San Diegans is out of work – Congress passed a failed $862 billion stimulus package, rescued and rewarded the risky behavior of Wall Street and passed a job-killing health care reform package with questionable constitutionality. It is past time for Democrats and Republicans to work together to put our economy back on track.

While the new Congress will have to act quickly on a number of fronts to get the economy moving again, addressing the recently passed health care legislation will certainly be near the top of the list. As Congress debated the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, there was one thing on which we all agreed: the health care system is broken. In 2007, we spent approximately $7,421 for every man, woman and child in America on heath-related costs. Without real reform, health-care costs will suffocate our economy. Unfortunately, PPACA spends $1 trillion to reform health care, yet does little to address the real problem: unsustainable cost increases.

According to a November 2009 analysis by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, rather than reducing the cost of insurance, the new law will actually increase costs on Americans seeking health insurance in the open market by approximately $2,100 per year. This is particularly worrisome to American families who may find themselves shoved off their employer health plans. In May 2010, Fortune magazine reported that several Fortune 500 companies were analyzing the impact of PPACA on their employee health plans. In just one example, AT&T, which currently spends $4.1 billion for its employer-sponsored health plan for 1.2 million employees and their families, determined it could eliminate its employee health plan, pay the $2,000-per-employee penalty and save $3.5 billion. Higher premiums and lost coverage are just two of the unintended consequences of PPACA.

Another example of unintended, and somewhat ridiculous, consequences in PPACA can be found in a provision that requires individuals to obtain a doctor’s prescription before using their own money to purchase over-the-counter medications like aspirin or Nyquil. We need to start over.

Congress should repeal the flawed health care bill and replace it with common-sense reforms that ensure increased access to care while addressing the ever-increasing cost curve of health care for our businesses and families. Reforms like: ending frivolous lawsuits that put lawyers between patients and their doctors, which, according to the Congressional Budget Office, will save $50 billion; expanding and funding state high-risk pools to allow for affordable health care options for those with catastrophic conditions; allowing small businesses to band together to purchase health care plans; and empowering individuals to buy insurance across state lines as the Constitution empowers Congress to do through the Commerce Clause. Simultaneously, we must take strong steps to protect consumers. Insurance companies must be held accountable and barred from denying coverage to policyholders due to frivolous administrative mistakes.

PPACA needs to be replaced with reforms that meaningfully address the cost of health care, without sacrificing the best health-care delivery system in the world or our constitutional rights. Americans deserve a health-care system that empowers the patient over the bureaucracy. Congress must work together in a bipartisan way to address the critical challenges that face our country from health-care reform to job creation and partisan bickering will not deliver the results that our families demand.

Bilbray is a Republican who represents California’s 50th congressional district, which covers an area from Carlsbad to north San Diego to Escondido.